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Bash scripting cheatsheet

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Introduction Example

This is a quick reference to getting started with Bash scripting.

#!/usr/bin/env bash

NAME="John"

Learn bash in y minutes echo "Hello $NAME!"

(learnxinyminutes.com)

Bash Guide
String quotes
(mywiki.wooledge.org)

NAME="John"

echo "Hi $NAME" #=> Hi John

Conditional execution echo 'Hi $NAME' #=> Hi $NAME

git commit && git push

Functions
git commit || echo "Commit failed"

get_name() {

Strict mode echo "John"

set -euo pipefail

echo "You are $(get_name)"

IFS=$'\n\t'

See: Functions
See: Unofficial bash strict mode

Brace expansion

echo {A,B}.js

 {A,B}

{A,B}.js

{1..5}

See: Brace expansion

# Parameter expansions
Basics Substitution

name="John"
${FOO%suffix}
echo ${name}

echo ${name/J/j} #=> "john" (substitution)

${FOO#prefix}
echo ${name:0:2} #=> "Jo" (slicing)

echo ${name::2} #=> "Jo" (slicing)

${FOO%%suffix}
echo ${name::-1} #=> "Joh" (slicing)

echo ${name:(-1)} #=> "n" (slicing from right)

${FOO##prefix}
echo ${name:(-2):1} #=> "h" (slicing from right)

echo ${food:-Cake} #=> $food or "Cake"

${FOO/from/to}

${FOO//from/to}
length=2

echo ${name:0:length} #=> "Jo"

${FOO/%from/to}

${FOO/#from/to}
See: Parameter expansion

STR="/path/to/foo.cpp"
Length
echo ${STR%.cpp} # /path/to/foo

echo ${STR%.cpp}.o # /path/to/foo.o

${#FOO}
echo ${STR%/*} # /path/to

echo ${STR##*.} # cpp (extension)

Default values
echo ${STR##*/} # foo.cpp (basepath)

echo ${STR#*/} # path/to/foo.cpp

${FOO:-val}
echo ${STR##*/} # foo.cpp

${FOO:=val}
echo ${STR/foo/bar} # /path/to/bar.cpp

${FOO:+val}
 ${FOO:?message}
STR="Hello world"

echo ${STR:6:5} # "world"

echo ${STR: -5:5} # "world"

Omitting the : removes the (non)nullity checks, e

SRC="/path/to/foo.cpp"

BASE=${SRC##*/} #=> "foo.cpp" (basepath)

DIR=${SRC%$BASE} #=> "/path/to/" (dirpath)

# Loops
Basic for loop C-like for loop

for i in /etc/rc.*; do
for ((i = 0 ; i < 100 ; i++)); do

echo $i
echo $i

done
done

Reading lines Forever

cat file.txt | while read line; do

while true; do

echo $line
···

done
done

# Functions
Defining functions Returning values

myfunc() { myfunc() {

echo "hello $1"

local myresult='some value'

}
echo $myresult

# Same as above (alternate syntax)

function myfunc() {
result="$(myfunc)"

echo "hello $1"

Arguments
 myfunc "John"
$#

$*

$@

$1

$_

Note: $@ and $* must be quoted in order to perf

(arguments as separate strings).

See Special parameters.

# Conditionals
Conditions File conditions

[[ -e FILE ]]
Note that [[ is actually a command/program that returns either 0 (true) or 1 (false). Any program that obeys
the same logic (like all base utils, such as grep(1) or ping(1)) can be used as condition, see examples.
[[ -r FILE ]]

[[ -z STRING ]] [[ -h FILE ]] Empty string

[[ -n STRING ]] [[ -d FILE ]] Not empty string

[[ STRING == STRING ]] [[ -w FILE ]] Equal

[[ STRING != STRING ]] [[ -s FILE ]] Not Equal

[[ NUM -eq NUM ]] [[ -f FILE ]] Equal

[[ NUM -ne NUM ]] [[ -x FILE ]] Not equal

[[ NUM -lt NUM ]] [[ FILE1 -nt FILE2 ]] Less than

[[ NUM -le NUM ]] [[ FILE1 -ot FILE2 ]]Less than or equal

[[ NUM -gt NUM ]] [[ FILE1 -ef FILE2 ]] Greater than

 [[ NUM -ge NUM ]] Greater than or equal

[[ STRING =~ STRING ]] Regexp

(( NUM < NUM )) Numeric conditions

More conditions

[[ -o noclobber ]] If OPTIONNAME is enabled

[[ ! EXPR ]] Not

[[ X && Y ]] And

[[ X || Y ]] Or

# Arrays
Defining arrays Working with

Fruits=('Apple' 'Banana' 'Orange')

echo ${Fruit
echo ${Fruit
echo ${Fruit
Fruits[0]="Apple"

echo ${#Frui
Fruits[1]="Banana"

echo ${#Frui
Fruits[2]="Orange"

echo ${#Frui
echo ${Fruit
echo ${!Frui
Operations

Fruits=("${Fruits[@]}" "Watermelon") # Push

Iteration
Fruits+=('Watermelon') # Also Push

Fruits=( ${Fruits[@]/Ap*/} ) # Remove by regex match

for i in "${
unset Fruits[2] # Remove one item

echo $i

Fruits=("${Fruits[@]}") # Duplicate

done

Fruits=("${Fruits[@]}" "${Veggies[@]}") # Concatenate

lines=(`cat "logfile"`) # Read from file

# Dictionaries
Defining Working with dictionaries

declare -A sounds
echo ${sounds[dog]} # Dog's sound

echo ${sounds[@]} # All values

echo ${!sounds[@]} # All keys

sounds[dog]="bark"

echo ${#sounds[@]} # Number of element

sounds[cow]="moo"

unset sounds[dog] # Delete dog

sounds[bird]="tweet"

sounds[wolf]="howl"

Declares sound as a Dictionary object (aka associative array).

# Options
Options Glob options

set -o noclobber # Avoid overlay files (echo "hi" > foo)

shopt -s nul
set -o errexit # Used to exit upon error, avoiding cascading errors
shopt -s fai
set -o pipefail # Unveils hidden failures
shopt -s noc
set -o nounset # Exposes unset variables
shopt -s dot
shopt -s glo

Set GLOBIGNOR

# History
Commands Expansions

history Show
!$ history

shopt -s histverify Don’t execute expanded result immediately

!*
 !-n
Operations
!n
!! Execute last command again
!<command>
!!:s/<FROM>/<TO>/ Replace first occurrence of <FROM> to <TO> in most recent command

!!:gs/<FROM>/<TO>/
Slices
Replace all occurrences of <FROM> to <TO> in most recent command

!$:t Expand only basename from last parameter of most recent command
!!:n

!$:h Expand only directory from last parameter of most recent command
!^

!$
!! and !$ can be replaced with any valid expansion.

!!:n-m

!!:n-$

!! can be repla

# Miscellaneous
Numeric calculations Subshells

$((a + 200)) # Add 200 to $a

(cd somedir;
pwd # still

$(($RANDOM%200)) # Random number 0..199

Redirection
Inspecting commands
python hello
python hello
command -V cd

python hello
#=> "cd is a function/alias/whatever"

python hello
python hello
python hello
Trap errors
python hello
diff <(ls -r
 trap 'echo Error at about $LINENO' ERR

Case/switch
or

case "$1" in

traperr() {
start | up
echo "ERROR: ${BASH_SOURCE[1]} at about ${BASH_LINENO[0]}"
vagrant
}
;;

set -o errtrace
*)

trap traperr ERR

echo "Us
;;

Source relative esac

source "${0%/*}/../share/foo.sh"

printf

Transform strings printf "Hell

#=> "Hello Sv
-c Operations apply to characters not in the given set
printf "1 +
#=> "1 + 1 =
-d Delete characters

printf "This
-s Replaces repeated characters with single occurrence
#=> "This is

-t Truncates

[:upper:] All upperDirectory

case letters of s

[:lower:] All lower case letters

DIR="${0%/*}

[:digit:] All digits

[:space:] AllGetting optio

whitespace

[:alpha:] All letters

while [[ "$1
-V | --ver
[:alnum:] All letters and digits
echo $ve
Example exit

;;

echo "Welcome To Devhints" | tr [:lower:] [:upper:]

-s | --str
WELCOME TO DEVHINTS
shift; s
;;

-f | --fla

Heredoc flag=1
 ;;

cat <<END
esac; shift;
hello world
if [[ "$1" ==
END

Reading inpu
Special variables
echo -n "Pro
read ans

$? Exit status of last task

echo $ans

$! PID of last background task

read -n 1 an
$$ PID of shell

Filename of the shell script

$0
Go to previou
$_ Last argument of the previous command
pwd # /home/
cd bar/

See Special parameters.

pwd # /home/
cd -

pwd # /home/
Check for command’s result

if ping -c 1 google.com; then

Grep check
echo "It appears you have a working internet connection"

fi

if grep -q '
echo "You
fi

# Also see
Bash-hackers wiki (bash-hackers.org)

Shell vars (bash-hackers.org)

Learn bash in y minutes (learnxinyminutes.com)

Bash Guide (mywiki.wooledge.org)

ShellCheck (shellcheck.net)

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